Serco starts new environmental contracts in Canterbury

Serco has this week started two new eight-year contracts, worth a combined value of £64m, to deliver Refuse, Recycling and Street Cleansing services and Grounds and Landscaping services on behalf of Canterbury City Council.

Serco already has extensive experience in serving the community in Canterbury having successfully run waste, recycling, street cleansing and grounds maintenance and landscaping services under one contract for the past 17 years.

Serco scored a satisfaction rating of over 91% for its performance as the council's environmental services partner in a recent independent survey. The company now aims to build on this success by continuing to deliver high quality environmental services for residents whilst also achieving greater internal operational efficiencies to help generate savings for the Council.

Serco will introduce innovations aimed at improving Refuse, Recycling and Street Cleansing services across Canterbury under the terms of its new contract. From this summer, Serco will provide the local community with an enhanced recycling service which will enable residents to recycle glass for the first time. They will also benefit from a new weekly food waste collection service and a space saving insert for their recycling bins to aid paper and card collections.

Serco is also introducing a range of new safety features to its fleet of refuse and recycling collection vehicles. From June, the new fleet will be equipped with rear and side facing cameras so the driver can clearly see crew or members of the public at the back or side of the vehicle. The fleet will also be fitted with full LED lighting, reversing alarms and, where necessary, Chapter 8 high visibility markings, whilst refuse vehicles will have auto stop in reverse, which is activated by a sensor.

The separate Grounds and Landscaping contract will see Serco continue to maintain Canterbury's parks environment which plays a vital role in supporting the district's £240m tourism industry. This not only covers Canterbury's parks but also its cemeteries, children's play areas, gardens, benches, 2,500 trees and sports pitches. Serco will retain management of the booking system for Canterbury's sports pitches, which has seen usage and income increase by 50% over the five last years and, for the first time, take responsibility for the Council's Dog Warden Service.

Mike Boult, Director for Serco's environmental services business said, "We are delighted to extend our long-term partnership with Canterbury City Council. These new contracts will eventually see Serco delivering essential environmental services across the district for 25 years. Our previous experience means that we are uniquely placed to understand the importance of providing these services to both the local community and the thousands of tourists that visit the city each year. We will continue to work closely with the council to devise the most effective and innovative ways to develop the Canterbury environment".

Larissa Reed, Head of Neighbourhood Services for Canterbury City Council added: "We have developed a strong relationship with Serco over many years. These contracts cover some of our most high profile services and we're looking forward to working with Serco's staff to deliver them to the public."